Dave Bautista Unsure of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ Return
Dave Bautista is still unhappy with Disney after Alan Horn’s controversial decision to overstep Marvel Studios producer Kevin Feige and fire James Gunn over prior comments dug up by fascists to damage him. So unhappy, in fact, that he’s not even sure if he’ll fulfill the rest of his contract and appear in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Speaking on The Jonathan Ross Show, Bautista was asked about if he had a future in the Guardians franchise, to which he bluntly replied that he’s really not sure at this point:
“Yeah, there’s a bit of an issue. It’s a bittersweet conversation. No, it’s a bitter-bitter conversation because I’m not really happy with what they’ve done with James Gunn. They’re putting the movie off – it’s on hold indefinitely – and, to be honest with you, I don’t know if I wanna work for Disney. You know, I’ve been very vocal about the way I feel, and I’m not afraid to admit how I feel.”
The full interview can be seen below.
As it stands, Marvel is fighting to make sure that James Gunn’s story and script are used as the basis of the story for whomever will take over in the director’s chair, even if it ends up being revised. Said story was explicitly noted as being important for the future of the MCU as a whole, and given how set-ups for future films are important to the process, the turmoil behind the scenes with the movie is something that may have serious repercussions for Disney’s most lucrative movie franchise. Suffice to say, it’s likely that Bautista isn’t the only person currently working for Disney who’s pissed about Gunn’s firing.
It should be noted that, while Bautista’s anger at Disney not subsiding at this point likely indicates that he won’t be back for the third Guardians movie, his role in Avengers 4 is unlikely to be cut. Even though [SPOILER ALERT] he was among the many casualties of Avengers: Infinity War, his death is likely to be undone and stay undone for GOTGV3, and since he’s doing reshoots for Avengers, that lends credence to the idea that he’ll still be needed. And while some are arguing that Drax could be written out of GOTGV3 entirely, Gunn’s insistence for the third film to serve as the ending of the original version of the team’s story is something that will likely be preserved, and since Drax is one of the founding members, he will have to be included. So if Bautista is really done with Marvel, then it’s looking like someone else will be stepping into the Destroyer’s shoes.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was expected to release in 2020, but following the removal of James Gunn from the project, a release window for the project is still unclear.
Grant Davis is a freelance writer who has covered entertainment news for more than seven years. His articles have frequently appeared in Star Wars News Net as well as as other entertainment-related websites. As someone who grew up on Star Wars and comic book movies, he’s completely thrilled with the current era of genre entertainment.
